Here's the list of the 20 competitors for the upcoming season of Survivor consisting of former castaways along with my analysis on the choices and their odds of winning:
Heroes
Rupert Boneham (Previous seasons: Pearl Islands, All-Stars) Rupert's always been a good guy, but perhaps too nice to win this game. We've seen him come close in his previous two outings. I just don't know if he's gained that killer edge to put him over the top.
James Clement (Previous seasons: China, Micronesia) I'm a little surprised he was brought back for a third time. He's obviously got superior physical strength, but I just don't see him playing the social game well enough to make it far.
Colby Donaldson (Previous seasons: The Australian Outback, All-Stars) One of the few returning castaways from an early season. Colby was a strong player back in the day, but we've seen a lot better contestants both physically and socially come along since then. It's hard to believe, but he may be an underdog considering some of the large personalities on both tribes.
Cirie Fields (Previous seasons: Panama, Micronesia) I don't know why they keep bringing her back. I've never been fond of her or her gameplay. She seems to always do well, but I can't understand why. Let's hope the same doesn't hold true this time around.
Amanda Kimmell (Previous seasons: China, Micronesia) Here's a unique case. This is Amanda's third time and she still has never been voted off once. She also has never won. Something's gotta give this time. If she makes it to the finals, lets hope she's finally figured out how to properly win over the jury. If I had to guess though, my bet is on her finally seeing her torch snuffed out.
Jessica “Sugar” Kiper (Previous season: Gabon) I had concerns that Sugar would be real irritating when I first saw her. Then she ended up getting crapped on by everyone around her, making her extremely sympathetic. It remains to see whether that will hold true again this time around. She may be a bit too naive to win it all.
Stephenie LaGrossa (Previous seasons: Palau, Guatemala) I really liked Stephanie in her first go round and then she became somewhat unpleasant in Guatamala. In neither case did she win. Win or lose, I hope we see the likeable Stephanie reemerge this season.
James “J.T.” Thomas (Previous season: Tocantins) An obvious strong player who was instantly likeable as well. They may make him an instant target, since they may want to eliminate the previous winners early. If he hangs on to the merge, he's got a good chance of making it all the way.
Tom Westman (Previous season: Palau) Tom just bulldozed through the competition in Palau, but I have a feeling he may have a more difficult time here. He's one of the oldest competitors, so I'll be watching to see if he can still hang with the big boys or if he'll just become the grumpy old man.
Candice Woodcock (Previous season: Cook Islands) Here's the first big 'huh' of the game. I had to go back and look at who this was. Even after seeing her picture, she still didn't strike me as anyone I wanted to see again, nor did I feel she's worthy of being a hero. I worry, just like with Amber during the All Star season, someone unworthy of being included in the cast will end up winning this thing because everyone else is so concerned with eliminating the big names.
Villains
Tyson Apostol (Previous season: Tocantins) Tyson was kind of outshone by other larger personalities on his own season, so I wonder if he'll be able to make himself known here or if he'll just fade into the woodwork. I don't think he has the same level of savvy as some of his teammates to survive past the merge.
Randy Bailey (Previous season: Gabon) I had high hopes for him being a standout personality during his season, but he kept to himself more than I would have liked. Despite his gruff demeanor, I actually liked Randy and hope he does well here.
Sandra Diaz-Twine (Previous season: Pearl Islands) I could have done without her being brought back. She was an undeserving winner back in Pearl Islands, so I would hate to see here go far again. I have a feeling that with so many strong men on this team, she'll go quickly.
Danielle DiLorenzo (Previous season: Panama) Basically the same comments I had about Candace apply doubly here. A major 'who???' factor here. I have to believe she only got in because they couldn't get Richard Hatch out of jail in enough time and they figured they'd rather see her naked than him. I pray to go she doesn't win either.
Russell Hantz (Previous season: Samoa) I really want him to do well after getting snubbed last season. This guy is amazing at game play. On the plus side, since this season was filmed right after Samoa, none of the other castaways should know much about him. However, the fact that he was so upset about losing last season makes me think he didn't go far this time around. Let's hope that's not the case.
Jerri Manthey (Previous seasons: Australian Outback, All-Stars) I'm not crazy about Jerri, but she's likely to make for good TV. It sounds like she's decided to embrace her inner bitch this time, which will be more tolerable than her trying to act nice and still coming off like a bitch. My guess is she's too unlikeable to win, but stranger things have happened.
“Boston” Rob Mariano (Previous seasons: Marquesas, All-Stars) Boston Rob irritated me both times he was on Survivor, but then I found him to be quite fun when he did the Amazing Race. Hopefully, he'll be more entertaining than annoying. He's proven to be pretty successful, but I wonder if he still has enough new tricks up his sleeve to maintain his dominance.
Parvati Shallow (Previous seasons: Cook Islands, Micronesia) I still can't believe she managed to pull off the victory in fans vs. favorites. I don't consider her to be a smart player, but we've seen that isn't always necessary to pick up a victory in this game. I have a feeling she'll find it's more difficult for her this time now that's she's already won.
“Coach” Benjamin Wade (Previous season: Tocantins) I'm really looking forward to seeing what the Dragon Slayer will do this time around. Some people who were outspoken in their previous seasons try going the opposite way if they play the game again, but somehow I don't see him doing that. If he becomes too intolerable, he'll get a quick boot. But finding that right alliance may allow him to coast to the finals.
Courtney Yates (Previous season: China) She was so mean and nasty, I can easily see why she was brought back on the villains side. However, I've gotten to see her doing some stuff on Entertainment Weekly with their Survivor reporter, Dalton Ross, and she's pretty hilarious on there. Oddly enough, I might be rooting for her this time around.
And now here's a video previewing the upcoming season that aired during last night's People's Choice Awards:
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